The Union has filed two grievances on behalf of all CHW at GVCSS. 

Picking Up Gloves Grievance

CHWs are required to travel to the office once per month to pick up gloves and are not paid for their travel time. It is the Union's position that this violates Article 15.13 Scheduling Limitations. This article states that if you are required to report to a different location before commencing work, this shall be included in your scheduled workday. The remedy we seek is for CHWs to be paid for their travel time when picking up gloves at the office. 

15-Minute Visit Grievance

The Union is aware that 15-minute visits are the source of significant problems for CHWs. We are also aware that the use of 15-minute visits has increased and that CHWs are sometimes required to complete tasks beyond medication during 15-minute visits. 

It is the Union's position that 15-minute visits violate Article 15.7 Travel Time which states that travel time should be scheduled by the Employer and is included in paid hours of work. The Employer has stated that 10 minutes of travel time is included in the 15-minute visit. It is the Union's position that the vast majority of client visits require more than 5 minutes to execute and that the Employer therefore is not scheduling travel time within the 15-minute visit. 

This issue has been discussed at the Joint Labour Management Meetings and some progress has already been made to reduce the number of 15-minute visits. However, the Union seeks to eliminate 15-minute visits and therefore a grievance has been filed.

Remember, you can take action now to reduce the number of 15-minute visits by reporting to your Supervisor whenever you require more time for a client visit. Some CHWs have been successful in getting visit times increased by doing this. If after reporting this to your Supervisor – the visit is removed from your schedule – contact a steward and request help.

In solidarity

Fateh Born

Staff Representative

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